1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printing apparatus, a printing medium, a memory, a computer-readable medium, a printing system, and a printing method.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a need has arisen for printed matter, which is printed by printing apparatuses such as inkjet printers, to possess not only a simple quality for printing letters and/or line drawings, but also to possess higher image quality that is on par with silver halide photographs. Therefore, in order to reduce blotting, which becomes the cause deterioration in image quality, printing is controlled in accordance with qualities of paper to be the printing medium, such as absorbability.
For example, in case of performing printing where high image quality is desired, printing is carried out according to a so-called interlace mode. In interlace-mode printing, high image quality printing is realized by distributing variations in ejection characteristics of the nozzles and/or nozzle pitches and making the variations not stand out. This printing mode is also applied in situations where there is a possibility that blotting may occur if adjacent dots are continuously printed because the paper has low absorbability and the ink is hard to dry. This is a printing mode in which, for example: upon printing image data for one line in the main-scanning direction, which is the direction in which the print head performs scanning, the print head performs scanning several times, wherein each scan, the dots are printed with intervals therebetween; and the intervals between the dots are successively printed as the scanning is repeated. In order to carry out such printing, a rasterizing process for sorting the print data is necessary.
However, as for paper that serves as the printing medium, there are various types of paper having different characteristics, and there are various types of interlace modes that are to be set as the printing mode. Therefore, in order to obtain an image having a satisfactory image quality, printing has to be carried out with an interlace mode that suits each type of paper. It would be burdensome for the user to set the printing mode to an interlace mode suiting the paper that is set to the printing apparatus every time printing is carried out.
Further, the current demand for high quality images is extremely keen, and consideration is being made to reduce, as much as possible, occurrence of blotting. However, even if the paper is produced according to the same specifications, there is a possibility that the characteristics of the paper may differ due to differences in environment at the time of production and differences in production lots. Thus, even when printing is carried out on paper that originally is blot resistant according to an interlace mode suiting this paper, there is a problem that in some situations, blotting occurs and a satisfactory image cannot be obtained.